SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- The family of murder victim Lori Bresnahan supports the Justice Department's decision not to pursue the death penalty against David Renz, Bresnahan's cousin said today.

Bresnahan's relatives had told the prosecutors they did not want a death penalty prosecution over her murder and the rape of a 10-year-old girl, said Jim O'Hara, one of her cousins who kept in contact with the prosecutors.

"It had absolutely nothing to do with any philosophical opposition to the death penalty or any concern about that person's life," O'Hara said of Renz. "It had 100 percent to do with protecting the interests of Jane Doe." The child's identity has not been publicly disclosed because she was the victim of a sex crime.

O'Hara, a former reporter with The Post-Standard, said he received a call around 3 p.m. from U.S. Attorney Richard Hartunian, who told him about the U.S. Justice Department's decision on Renz.

Federal prosecutors have not told Bresnahan's family whether they recommended a death penalty prosecution to Attorney General Eric Holder, O'Hara said.

The prosecutors have repeatedly told Bresnahan's relatives that the family's interests were a key concern in their decision on whether to pursue a capital punishment prosecution, O'Hara said.

Even so, O'Hara called it a nice surprise to hear today's decision, based on previous conversations he'd had with prosecutors.

"Whenever I had asked what about this case would encourage them to supersede the wishes of the family, they repeatedly talked about how this was such a heinous crime, how this was one of the worst crimes that anyone could remember," he said.

"I simply said, 'I would imagine that any family that had gone through a homicide would probably be able to say the same thing,'" O'Hara said.

Hartunian met with Bresnahan's family in March and promised to let them know of the Justice Department's decision before it became public. Family members had expressed concern that they had first learned about developments in the case through news reports, O'Hara said.

The family was satisfied with the punishment Renz will get when he's sentenced in Onondaga County Court, O'Hara said. Renz is scheduled to be sentenced Friday to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

"The deal that (Onondaga County District Attorney) Bill Fitzpatrick cut with the defense seemed to make sure that all the bases were covered," O'Hara said.

If the feds had gone forward with the death penalty, Renz would've been allowed to withdraw his guilty plea in county court. That would've opened the door to the possibility of two separate trials -- one in federal court and one in county court.

"That would've meant subjecting the young victim to two rounds of testimony and cross examination," O'Hara said.